Strachie was a funny mixture. He could never stop talking about how badly his mother was treated by the British soldiers during the Boer War; how they chased her on horseback and generally behaved like thugs.

Yet, when he went over to Britain on the 1931/32 tour and got to know the people he had previously regarded as enemies, he took a different attitude altogether. He saw the necessity of forgiving and forgetting.

He went over as a lock forward, but they put him on the flank and that is where he really made his mark.

If anyone ever had a beautifully built body, it was Strachan. He was so well made, so fast and he had great anticipation.

His hand was all too evident in many tries, but particularly so in the second test against New Zealand in 1937. We were up against a 6-0 lead at half-time and were really battling. First Boy Louw got concussed, Ebbo Bastard was a passenger for a time, and finally we were playing with only thirteen effective men.

It was then that Louis Strachan took matters into his own hands, marshalled the pack and saw to it that the ball was fed to the backs. He was all over the field and played a big role in our 13-6 win.

A true motivator and a great player.